Off-duty firefighter lauded for heroism

John Nickerson

Updated 10:01 pm, Thursday, January 30, 2014

Stamford firefighter Zachary McArthur poses for a photograph at Station 5 in Stamford, Conn., on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014. McArthur saved a dog from a burning building in Cheshire on Tuesday while on a trip to see family.
Photo: Jason Rearick

Stamford firefighter Zachary McArthur poses for a photograph at Station 5 in Stamford, Conn., on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014. McArthur saved a dog from a burning building in Cheshire on Tuesday while on a trip to see family.
Photo: Jason Rearick

STAMFORD -- An off-duty Stamford firefighter who happened to drive past a Cheshire home, which caught fire this week after the owner left ashes from his wood stove in a cardboard box on his wood deck, broke into the home and saved the family dog trapped in the residence.

Two days after the Tuesday afternoon fire, firefighter Zach McArthur's actions were called "heroic" by Cheshire Fire Chief Jack Casner, who thanked him for risking his life to search the home for victims before his firefighters could get there.

Remembering the tragic 2011 Christmas fire on Shippan that had the same cause and claimed the lives of Madonna Badger's three daughters and parents, Casner said, "The people of Stamford suffered a tremendous loss a few years ago. Despite all our efforts, people get complacent when discarding their ashes."

Casner said this was the second fire since December in Cheshire caused by someone being careless with their ashes. Although the dog was found, the family cat died in the blaze Tuesday.

"It is imperative you apply the proper precautions and procedures when you do this," said Casner, adding that ashes should be put into a lidded metal container and stored away from any structures.

McArthur, 32, a four-year member of the Stamford Fire Department based at the Woodside firehouse, said, "I was just happy I could help."

Stamford Fire Chief Peter Brown said, "It is always a great feeling to see that our members have such a strong feeling of brotherhood and sisterhood in the fire service in that they are always ready to reach out to protect citizens wherever they may be. The general public is lucky to have firefighters like Zack around to put their safety above his own, even when off duty."

McArthur, who was on duty the night of the Shippan fire and runs a tree service in his off time, said just before spotting the fire he was at Stamford fire Capt. Matt Palmer's home in Cheshire looking at some trees he was preparing to cut down.

A few minutes after 1 p.m. he got onto Interstate 84 heading eastbound and spotted a plume of smoke and figured there was a car fire ahead.

Once he was on the highway though, he realized the smoke wasn't coming from a car, but from a house on the right side of the highway next to exit 26.

After pulling his car over, he saw flames climbing the home and could only think about whether anyone was inside, he said.

"I went directly into rescue mode, knowing there were no hose lines or anything to do fire suppression," McArthur said.

Running down a steep, snowy 200-foot embankment, McArthur jumped over a five-foot chain link fence and ran around to the front of the house, got out his cellphone and dialed 911 and began kicking the door.

Another man came down the driveway and McArthur reached over the bannister of the deck and passed the phone to the man, hoping he would be able to give the 911 operator a better idea of where they were than he could.

Kicking a third time, the door to 104 Hickory Lane sprang open, McArthur stepped through the splintered frame, checked the first floor and found Bailey, a 3-year-old Cockapoo, sitting on a bed in a back bedroom.

McArthur grabbed the dog, took him outside and passed him to a medic who had just arrived. McArthur told the medic he was going back in to check if anyone was upstairs.

"I made it to the second floor, but when I got up there heavy smoke was banked just about to the floor," McArthur said.

He searched the two upstairs bedrooms, beginning with the one closest to the fire, but did not find anyone.

"I could see the conditions were visibly changing and I knew it was time to get out. The smoke was really banking down and I was having trouble breathing, and visibility went to nothing and the smoke and heat was pushing me down the stairs," McArthur said.

Seconds after going back outside, McArthur, who was coughing from the smoke he inhaled while inside, said he opened the front door to take one more look, but saw the fire would not let him back in.

Chief Casner said the fire was so fierce by the time his firefighters got there they could not enter the home.

Cheshire Fire Marshal Jeff Boland said the house is probably a complete loss. The homeowner said he put some ashes from his wood stove into a cardboard box and brought them outside, Boland said. The owner said he usually throws them into the snow, but Tuesday morning he was a little late for work and left the box on the wooden porch, Boland said.